I arrived on site at 6AM, just as the eastern sky was starting to brighten, which it did for about 30 minutes and then I was let down by the BBC weather forecast; I don’t know why I chose to believe what they said, but it was windy and wet!
Black Grouse were seen in three different areas, one of which was lekking. 11, 7 and 3, that was the Blackcock, 5 and 4 were the Greyhen.
Red Grouse, Common Snipe, Curlew, Lapwing and Golden Plover were all displaying as dawn was breaking, but all went quiet with the change of the weather, so I changed tack and headed North.
Turning onto a small forest road that passes an outcrop of rock, six Common Buzzard are in the air together and a Peregrine is on the rock, soon joining the buzzards in the air. Further up the road, another six Common Buzzard are in the air and with them are two Goshawk.
Driving further into the forest, I stop at an area with a good all round view and have a Sparrowhawk, a Goshawk and a Buzzard in the air together. I tried to get pictures of any of the three together, but the Sparrowhawk was avoiding the Buzzard and both of these were avoiding the Goshawk.
not the best image you’ll ever see of a Goshawk
Plenty of Crossbill, about forty (finally managed to record a singer) and plenty of Great Spotted Woodpecker, four seen together and two heard calling but just out of sight and a Green Woodpecker heard yaffling off in the distance.
And you know, when you get that feeling that you are being watched?
